Air power made the difference, the Allies securing 3 medals in one very effective strafing run. At the end with only one medal to win and a safety margin the Allies were able to take some risks to destroy the last German unit in close assault.

The Germans took an early lead, including a particularly heroic action on their right flank when two depleted units secured a medal and then retreated into the woods without any losses. However, the final medal proved elusive and the Allies gradually recovered to take a narrow victory.

We trade tank kills early on with most of the action on my left / Allied right. I then use AIR POWER to kill off a 1 fig infantry in town hex. But I lose a baseline panzer to BARRAGE. A few turns later I pick off another 1 fig infantry to lead 4 to 3. I then get 2 panzers into position to use my newly drawn ARMOR ASSAULT,but one is cutoff and killed with 5d.

My last panzer goes in using that cards but is double hit and flagged by AMBUSH. This negates a 4d attack on a US tank and perhaps a kill on a tank. I lose my last panzer on the next US turn and now with no ranged units on the board I can do little with a US tank and their arty still in operation. A US FIREFIGHT ends the game in the next turn.

The high hit rate on my panzers, the deadly BARRAGE and the timely AMBUSH were keys in this battle. Every time I tried to spring my panzers into the open they suffered high losses. I was outshot 25 to 5 in the last 4 turns.

I got the first kill on a center infantry with no retreat although it took three turns and 9 dice to do it. A German AIR POWER goes 3 for 4 and I would have loved to have a COUNTER ATTACK in my hand just then. The action then picks up in the center with two German infantry moving out into the open to attack Lausdell Crossroads.

I send two tanks from my right to attack the infantry but only get 2 hits on a 3 fig unit. A CLOSE ASSAULT then takes out one of my tanks-ouch!! I also lose my 1 fig infantry in Lausdell and it is a 2 to 1 game in favor of my opponent. My FIREFIGHT kills off one infantry and gets three hits on another. A turn later I take out a panzer and infantry and lead 4 to 2. We then trade tank kills in the center and it is a 5 to 3 game.

I then lose my last tank and an infantry is slowly picked off by two panzers at range. I use back to back INF ASSAULTs and setup two last ditch attacks to try nad win out. My first attack kills off a 2 fig infantry hiding in the woods near the German left baseline. A close run thing.

Tristan managed to box in my center for a while and I was having trouble breaking out. INF ASSAULT helped me a bit here. It seemed like the Allies had the upper hand and might keep it.

But Tristan was stuck with a handful of left cards and I drew some decent ones. Aided by 2-2-2 and ARMOR ASSAULT I finally broke through in the center and mopped up weak infantry units in the open. Poor shooting against my panzers hampered my opponent.

Tristan had decent cards - two CENTER ASSAULTs, two DHQs, MOVE OUT, COUNTER ATTACK and TFH (but only 1 infantry order off this one). He made steady progress and did a brillant job of pulling back weak units.

I made up ground with a midgame AIR POWER which took out a 2 fig Elite Panzer and wounded two infantry.

The battle was finally decided on my left after the Germans moved up with infantry. I had just the cards for this with an ASSAULT and INF ASSAULT. I was able to kill off 2 infantry here along with a center panzer. A turn later my BEL finished the game.

I made an early kill off a center infantry and then is was several turns before another was made as both sides moved into positions and burned several RECONs. I eliminated an Elite Panzer which rolled out of the woods on my right and my sandbag infantry was still intact. But then the germans used a CENTER ASSAULT and 10 units and quickly killed off my sandbag infantry along with a center tank. I stayed in cover but still lost a 1 fig infantry in Lausdell Crossroads to a panzer AMBUSH.

A few turns later I used my own CENTER ASSAULT (9 units) and killed infantry but missed a 1 fig panzer. A DHQ would order a center tank and it picked off the 1 fig panzer and I also reduced a center infantry to 1 fig. My 2 tank ARMOR ASSAULT then finished off a 2 fig center infantry but 2d against a 1 fig infantry in Lausdell only flagged it out of the town. My opponent finally got a decent card but could do little as most of my units were in cover. I had a 5 to 3 lead so could afford to play a CENTER RECON and my arty eliminated a 1 fig infantry for the win.

I quickly eliminate the sandbag infantry. By mid game I had gone nowhere and lost the one center panzer I pushed through the gap in the woods. I then finished off a weak tank but lost two infantry in return and trailed 2 to 3. I then used CENTER ASSAULT (8 units) and bagged an infantry with two panzer attacks. The Allied hit back with a CA (ordering 8 units) and I lost a center panzer.

This was most unlucky as now my ARMOR ASSAULT which I held from the start could only order 3 panzers. Two Elite Panzers closed with the US tanks and killed off one and redcued the other to 1 fig. A US DHQ wiped out one of my forward tanks as the battle raged around Lausdell. I killed off the last of the US armor on my next turn and a turn later my last two panzers closed in on a US right 3 fig infantry on the Allied baseline to end things.

My opponent started with a center 7 unit INF ASSAULT and my trail infantry is hit once. A few turns later my AIR POWER 4 hits on two center panzers and 2 hits on an infantry. A turn later I move a center tank-which had come from my right-forward and it kills off a 1 fig infantry and 1 fig panzer on the German baseline.

An Elite Panzer then moves from the German left to attack my tank on the baseline but cannot kill it. My tank then wipes out a full strength panzer-with the help of a 1d arty attack-and a 2 fig Elite panzer. This one tank accounted for 4 medals. Going thought the replay I see my opponent held AMBUSH and could have used it in my past 2 turns but did not.

I finally lose my forward tank but trading medals at a 4 to 1 ratio is a good thing. The Germans then take out my sandbag trail infantry. After several turns my infantry in Lausdell Crossroad is killed off but it took several attacks to do so. In the meantime I have advanced one of my left infantry into the woods near the German baseline and with the help of the M & M card am able to kill off one infantry.

My opponent had been patient for so long but with the score at 5 to 3 against him he rushed an elite panzer and infantry forward but I played ARMOR ASSAULT and my 2 tanks moved up and killed off the infantry.

The opening battle centered around the trail where I promptly lost an Elite Panzer and one of my infantry lost 3 figs. But I used a CLOSE ASSAULT and my 1 fig infantry took out the 3 fig sandbag infantry blocking the trail. I then lost my 1 fig infantry. At this point I held the AIR POWER card and was not worried about breaking up my units. One of my panzers then rolled down the trail and took out a 2 fig tank and got 2 hits on an infantry.

The Allied right flank was now empty of units. My TFH ordered two panzers and an infantry. One panzer pushed down the Allied right and blasted a tank on the center baseline. Another panzer moved over from my left into the center and finished off the 2 fig infantry while a center woods infantry got 2 hits on the infantry in Lausdell Crossroads. I enjoyed a solid 4 to 2 lead after that turn. But my units were helpless for them most part as I held AP and three right cards. I then drew COUNTER-ATTACK and after my opponent played DHQ in trying to take out my panzer on the Allied right-he only got 1 hit-I played my CA card but did little damage. I then lost my forward panzer.

A few turns later I used my AP card and it got a kill on a 1 fig baseline infantry but missed another. I had hoped to end the game right there. I lose another panzer on the allied right and it is a 5 to 3 game. I begin an attack on my right with 2 infantry against a forward infantry behind sandbags and get a hit on it.

My opponent then makes a mistake and moves a 1 fig infantry out of the cover of a center town and moves it into the open on his baseline. I move my elite panzer from my left into the center and kill off the 1 fig infantry.

After my 6-4 win in game 1, I just needed 4 medals to win the division.

I started with an unexciting hand (Inf Assault, Move Out, 3 flank cards, and sandbags). In fighting near the outlet of the Trail, I bagged an infantry and a tank, while losing my sandbag infantry. The Germans then Barraged my 2-fig infantry in the lead town -- and whiffed, with two flags.

We had a catfight on my left, as my 1-fig infantry whiffed against a German 1-fig in the woods, so the German 1-fig killed mine -- while on the same turn, the Germans brought two armored units out in the open and killed a full-strength infantry on my right. This was okay. I Armor Assaulted, killing the German 1-fig infantry and a 4-fig tank to clinch the division. The angry Germans wiped out one of my tanks with 3d to tie the game. However, I kayoed an infantry in the woods on my 11th turn, and then I got my own 3-hit tank kill on my next turn.

The Germans shot 41% (15/37) against infantry and 4/7 against armor. I shot 39% (14/36) against infantry and 43% (13/30) against armor. 44d rolled by Geoff, against 66d rolled by me.

I Barraged the Allied center tank off the board my first turn, and then hardly fired a shot my next 6 turns. At this point, I Armor Assaulted, moving one tank into my Right woods, and reducing the Allied right-center sandbag infantry to a single figure. The Allies responded with a 5-order TFH which killed three units: A German infantry and tank and (Ambush!) the Allied 1-fig infantry. I was able to bag the second Allied tank on my next turn, and got the last one a couple of turns later with a Firefight. (4-3 lead.) Some infantry kills followed that to wrap it up.

The Barrage was the defining moment in this battle. The two remaining tanks didn't have many good targets, as I got good cover from the terrain.

I shot 35% (15/43) against infantry, but 43% (9/21) against armor. Geoff shot 40% (12/30) against infantry and 32% (8/25) against armor. Overall, it was 64d vs 55d.

On my first turn I killed a center infantry. A German TFH only orders 2 units and neither fires as they advance into the center woods. I play CA but can only order 3 infantry and get 1 hit on 2d!! I then move up one tank and it gets 3 hits on a baseline center infantry. My DHQ is not able to kill off an Elite Panzer caught in a three unit crossfire by Lausdell Crossroads. A German BARRAGE gets 1 hit on my right tank. I then kill off the 2 fig Elite Panzer. The Germans have made little headway as they continue to move forward into the woods.

But then a German ARMOR ASSAULT rolls forward and kills off a tank but my infantry on the trail still holds. I bag one of the panzers after cutting it off. A turn later I move 6 infantry forward with INF ASSAULT and kill off a 2 fig panzer on my right and a 3 fig infantry on the trail. The German play ARMOR ASSAULT but now can only attack with 1 panzer and get 3 hits on an infantry.

My AIR POWER then whiffs on a baseline 1 fig infantry! A turn later I whiff on a baseline infantry as I move a tank onto the trail and an infantry moves into the woods to be able to attack the 1 fig infantry in my next turn. I then lose my center tank.

I then move my infantry in for the kill and it survives AMBUSH to finally finish off the baseline 1 fig infantry.

Both sides have trouble hitting their targets early on but the Allies make the first kill as I lose an infantry in the center. I use BEL to cutoff a tank near Lausdell Crossroads but whiff!! I have to use ARTY BOMBARD to order one of my center panzers and it rolls forward to pick off a 1 fig infantry near the Allied baseline. The poor shooting continues as 5d only flag back an Allied unit on my left.

Then things change as two of my left panzer kill off an infantry. The allies can only order units on their left. They move into the center and kill wound an infantry and get 2 hits on a baseline tank. Once again the Allies can only move units on their left. I finish off the wounded tank and infantry and also get another hit on a baseline infantry. I lead 4 to 1.

The Allied center which contains the most units is frozen is seems as they cannot move again. I continue my 2 panzer center attack and kill off another infantry. A two tank Allied ARMOR ASSAULT finally is able to do some damage I lose one of my panzers near the Allied baseline.

But the other panzer kills off a 3 fig baseline infantry for the win.

My 2 panzers were able to run amok as the Allies could not order any center units for 3 turns in a row. As I had four turns attacking units that could not retreat this and could not be attacked myself this was a lot easier than normal.

I was hit with a Allied T 1 AIR POWER -- this got 3 hits on my left panzers and 2 hits on an infantry. I would have to use subpar cards for most of the game and now a good deal of my offensive power was already gone.

This game really was about the dug In Allied infantry by the trail. It survived 10 dice and was reduced to 1 fig but recovered all three losses with M & M and I finally killed it off on my 11th turn after using 22 shots on it. I never got going due to the allies able to bunch up several units near the trail and my weak cards.

I did kill off a tank with BEL. But the parade of great Allied cards -- AIR POWER -- DHQ -- CA to my INF ASSAULT -- CENTER ASSAULT was too much to overcome considering that first turn AIR POWER and I was down 1 to 3 having lost three infantry. I soon lost 2 panzers.

My last turn was reduced to taking a 1d pot shot from the left woods. Then my opponent moved forward one tank and it got a hit and a flag on one of my panzers -- its OR attack was then able to target the 1 fig panzer that was hit with AP earlier and easily kill it off.

A German AIR POWER got 2 hits on my left and center infantry. I scored the first kill by the trail of an infantry in the woods. I then lost my infantry by the trail as the Germans used GENERAL ASSAULT to get into better positions. I used COUNTER-ATTACK and used two tanks to kill off a panzer by the trail. A German DHQ fired off 8 shots but only got 1 hit on my tanks.

I played TFH but could only order 1 tank and an infantry. I also made a key mistake and thought I had cutoff a panzer but it retreated into the woods and my 5d caused no damage at all. Another German DHQ saw my forward armor cut off and killed along with my 2 fig tank. I now trailed 2 to 3 and had only 1 tank left.

I played my other COUNTER-ATTACK but did little other than cause a few losses. A German MOVE OUT then sees three infantry reduce my infantry in Lausdell Crossroads to 1 fig.

I play my ARMOR ASSAULT and my last tank kills off a 1 fig infantry and its OR attack bags a 2 fig panzer. Then another German DHQ -- that is three so far folks -- kills off the last of my tanks. This is followed by a German FIREFIGHT which cause 3 losses to my infantry.

I reduce one center infantry to 2 figs. Another German infantry moves out of cover to attack my 3 fig infantry in a town hex. I kill off this unit and it is a 5 to 5 game.

I hope to use my BARRAGE to target the center 2 fig infantry but never get the chance as I lose my center 2 fig infantry on a 2d attack -- with the Germans using INF ASSAULT. Great German cards in this one with better dice -- ouch!!

Most of the early action centered around my dug in infantry. I brought my right tank over into the center and it did some damage to the German infantry but two 6d attacks later on failed to hit a panzer.

Then a German CENTER ASSAULT killed off my forward tank and dug in infantry. I used MOVE OUT to move two of my infantry into the cover of town hexes while two other fired on a panzer -- getting 2 hits. That panzer did play AMBUSH against my infantry in Lausdell Crossroads and got a hit there. The 1 fig panzer would pull back into the right woods while an Elite Panzer was moved forward in the same area.

I then kill off a German infantry in the center but my center tank moves up and misses on an Elite Panzer. My opponent CAs my DHQ and kills off my 1 fig infantry in Lausdell Crossroads while the Elite Panzer moves up and gets two hits on my center tank. I now trail 1 to 3.

I also play CA (DHQ) and try to right things a bit. But my arty has a key miss on a 1 fig infantry. I also miss two other shots vs an infantry. The M & M card recovers 1 hit on that infantry I missed last turn and it moves off its baseline into the woods.

I am now saddled with 4 right cards where I have no units and FIREFIGHT and CLOSE ASSAULT. I try FIREFIGHT and only get off 7 shots but do reduce an infantry on my left to 1 fig. An Elite Panzer then moves up to fire on my 2 fig center tank and kills with a hit and flag hit -- it had 1 hex where it could retreat and this lucky kill really hurts my chances.

I pick off that 1 fig infantry on the German baseline but whiff on the Elite Panzer. My infantry in the center town nearest to my right then is hit twice from 2 shots.

I use my newly drawn 2-2-2 card and attack with 4 units as the 2 right orders are lost. I hope to take out the elite panzer but need a bit of luck to do so. I get anything but and only get 1 hit with 5d -- flags really hurt me here as it retreat that tank into cover.

My BEL ordered infantry moves into my right and kills off the 1 fig Elite Panzer that had been hiding in the woods on my next turn. But then a two panzer attack rolls a key flag on my infantry in a town is flagged to my baseline.

I can do little with the cards I have and try to get some mileage out my only right unit. It fires 3d against a panzer but misses. A few turns later I lose that right infantry and the panzer OR attack flags another infantry out of a town hex into the open on my baseline.

I then pick off an infantry on my right. A German ARMOR ASSAULT reduces my baseline infantry to 1 fig. I now trail 4 to 5 and there is nothing in my hand that can gain me 2 medals. So I move my 1 fig infantry into a town hex and fire my arty which misses the panzers.

A turn later I try TFH and get three infantry orders along with my tank -- I really needed an order for my arty to stand a real chance at this. My 6d vs an elite panzer in the center gets 2 hits and my 5d vs a panzer on my left gets 2 hits -- 3 hits short of victory. I then lose my 1 fig left tank and the game.

The keys in this one were my lack of center cards - I rarely fired my arty - and my inability to deal with the German armor while losing two of my tanks was a big factor. Also missing that 1 fig infantry early on hurt and that unit would survive the battle. I think my hit pct of the panzers was akin to 20% - ouch!!

On my first turn I hit the sandbag infantry three times but then lose one of my own infantry. I kill off the 1 fig infantry on my next turn and also move one of my left panzers into the woods.

An Allied CENTER ASSAULT sees the Allied infantry moving into the cover of town hexes. I lose another infantry to a tank and infantry attack.

A few turns later my ARMOR ASSAULT does some damage as a major battle rages around Lausdel Crossroads. The Allies play their own ARMOR ASSAULT and kill off one of my panzers with 3 shots. This kill hurts as when I play COUNTER ATTACK I have one less panzer to come into contact with the enemy. I do kill off a 1 fig tank and the infantry in Lausdel Crossroads but miss a tank with 4d and whiff on the arty with 2d.

I then lose another panzer to make it a 4 to 4 game. After losing an elite panzer on the next Allied turn I trial 4 to 5 and seem to be in trouble.

A few turns later with no center cards and thus no way to order my only panzer left in the center I charge two infantry out of the woods on my left and they are able to finally kill off the last of the allied armor with 2 hits on 4 shots.

I then start a push on my left to try and kill off an infantry in the town there. I get a hit on it but its return fire gets 3 hits right back. Well with the game tied 5 to 5 and a 1 fig infantry on the front lines I press the attack with my two infantry and a panzer. I hope for a flag so that my tank can fire 3d but my two 2d infantry attacks kills off the 3 fig allied infantry and I barely win this one 6 to 5.

The inability of my panzers to deal with the Allied armor (a lot of missing on my part) ensured a difficult time for me.

I had some great cards, but sd had some great dice. On turn 7, he scored a triple hit on my Right tank, to take a short-lived 2-0 lead -- though on the next turn I would even the score by knocking off the offending Panzer and a 2-fig infantry in the woods.

On turn 10, I advanced my two remaining tanks with an Armor Assault, but my 7d against two full-strength armors scored only 2 hits. The Germans responded with TFH, completely de-tanking me, including a second triple-hit, and then finished off my infantry in the lead town for good measure. 5-2, Germans. I responded with a Firefight, which missed chances at two medals, but reduced one center infantry to a single figure. On my next turn, my artillery finished off that 1-fig on an Assault Center, before a German tank pushed an infantry of mine up against the back wall and crushed it.

sd shot 60% against infantry (15/25) and 41% (9/22) against my armor. I shot 26% (7/27) against German armor.

I started the game with two Right cards in my hand, and drew a couple more early on. By the time I was ready to move out of the woods, the Allied armor had taken solid defensive positions, and I was afraid to move. Meanwhile, the Allies were plinking figures off several of my units, so I played a totally defensive game.

I didn't kill the sandbag infantry until my 7th turn. sdnative didn't complete his first kill until an Assault Center on turn 12. I responded to this with an Armor Assault, but was too afraid to move my four attacking tanks out of cover, so they battled from a distance. Beginning with the Armor Assault, I eliminated enemy units on five consecutive turns, concluding the game on my 17th turn with a lucky 4-order TFH.

The Germans managed to get two tanks to the front of the woods on my right, so my heavy pieces kept their distance. When a German posse, including an SF armor, came after my infantry in the woods there, I responded with an Assault Center, wiping out that armor (to gain a 3-1 lead) and weakening two exposed infantries.

The next turn two of my tanks eliminated those two weak infantries, plus another that was on the Trail.

Despite having only 4 cards, I was the one who kept drawing the good ones. The only big Allied card was a 2-2-2, and I Counter-Attacked that. My other card plays included a TFH, Assault Center, both DHQs, a Move Out (just when an Allied tank had come up next to the infantry-filled woods), an Infantry Assault (5 orders), and the second Counter-Attack (eliminated a full-strength armor on my right). The Allies had only 2 cards with more than 4 orders.

The dice percentages were even, but I got off significantly more shots.

The key to this game was that the German dice simply did not work right: 35% against infantry (8/23) and 22% against armor (8/37). Both about 1/3 below average.

After turn 8, the score was tied 1-1, despite the fact that I had just played a Friefight and DHQ. But there were several 1-2 figure German infantries scattered around the board. Then the action started.

My TFH rolled 5 orders, doing some decent damage on the left and wiping out a 3-fig armor on the right. German Armor Assault killed my Left tank and my sandbag infantry. My Assault Center eliminated an infantry and arlor on the left, and another armor near the trail. Now leading 5-3, with excellent prospects.

With two consecutive 1-1-1s, I completed my fourth armor kill of the game. There were vulnerable German 1-fig infantries in every section, and six of the remaining German infantries were 2-fig or smaller.

I was lucky enough to roll 7 hits (4 inf, 3 arm) with Air Power on turn 4; three of the affected units would eventually be killed.

The Germans responded with Assault Center, followed by two Armor Assaults and a 2-2-2 -- but luckily, this sequence resulted in only one infantry kill. My response included an Assault Center that rolled only 2 hits in 10 dice, but each of those hits was a kill. After the second Armor Assault, my DHQ choked off one of the Panzer units. 4-3, Allies.

Allied Mechanics fully repaired a severely damaged armor unit, and on the following turn, it participated in an Attack Center that cut off and eliminated a 4-fig German armor that had gone infantry-hunting on my baseline.

With the entire German armor force reduced to a single figure, I just needed a way to finish the battle. That way came in the form of a Firefight against a 3-figure infantry in the front line of the woods.

13 turns, 6-3 medals, 29-22 figures. All Allied casualties happened on or immediately to the right of my center-right seem. All but one of the Axis casualties fell in the center. I shot a very lucky 76% (13/17) against infantry.

Okay, this one wasn't really fair. Every time a Panzer would emerge from the pass, I would score a couple of hits against it. In this manner, I slew three of them within the first 5 turns, losing only my sandbag infantry in the process.

The next big event was a German Armor Assault on turn 10, but that rolled only 2 hits in 12 dice. The main thing it did, in fact, was put two tanks right in the middle of my forces. So when I responded with TFH and rolled 4 orders, my 2 kills were not surprising. The Germans were now tankless. The only question was how I would get to one of their infantries. Finally, after three turns, I caught one in the woods.

The axis got off to a good start, taking a medal early on, but good went to bad went to worse when the Allies went on a rampage, killing off the units left and right. What was worse were the poor orders coming in.

A few allied tanks ended up being exponsed, resulting in another kill for the axis, but in the end the win was clearly for the allied side as they rounded off a good day with a final few kills.

A much closer battle, this rematch, where the axis forces started off well and got off to a nice defensive start, going up 3-0, but a lot of units had been whittled down to two or even one lone infantry or tank. This hurt the axis and it was only a matter of time before the allies cashed in on this and they did with a fine, 6 roll Their Finest Hour, all 6 being successes. 4-3.

From there, though, the board position was all in favor of the axis, who finished off the job quickly with a counter and 3 in the middle. Ultimately a decent win.

An exhilerating match between two very good players. The axis brought out their tanks early on, trying to get them through the forest, but were hit back time and time again by the allies, who took a 4-1 lead.

However, that's when the tide turned and the Axis forces started to get a little luckier (and the allies a lot unluckier - as if that were possible). The tanks stayed alive too long for the Allies' sake, and they ultimately made the difference, finishing off the last infantry unit to take the final kill.

I was fortunate to have enough Left, Center, and tactic cards, while the Allies had too much for their left flank, which was far from the battle. On turn 12, the Allies, trailing 4-2, played an Assault Center, advancing their one remaining armored unit out of Rocherath. They did kill one depleted Panzer -- but I played my second consecutive Counter-Attack. Three infantries took care of the tank. Three tanks took care of the 2-figure infantry in Krinkekt.

All the kills for both sides happened in the left half of my Center section or the Left column directly adjacent to it.

13 turns, 6-3 medals, 22-22 figures. Allied dice were better than average, but I had two safe 1-fig infantries at the end.

The Allies got off to a 4-1 lead after 5 turns, thanks to 4 kills at or near the exit of the Trail, while I could only kill the usual infantry in sandbags.

My cards had been great. After my fourth turn, I was actually holding a powerhouse hand: TFH, Armor Assault, and Infantry Assault (plus a Recon Left). However, my TFH rolled me 0 orders. Then, when I followed with the Armor Assault, I rolled 0-for-14 against Allied armor, plus a couple of misses against infantry. Two huge cards, totally wasted!

An Allied tank penetrated all the way to my back row and rolled 3 hits against an infantry there. I used three of the orders from my Infantry Assault to cut off that tank, only to have my first attacker roll 3 direct hits against it. A waste, but I couldn't complain.

The Allies now played a 1-1-1, which I Counter-Attacked, concentrating three Panzers in the Center, and finishing off an infantry to make the score 3-4. With incredible luck, I drew an Assault Center. An Allied Move Out thinned out my armor -- leaving me with three singleton tanks there in the middle. This was a dire situation, but at least there were a ton of targets.

With my Assault Center, it took two attackers to bring down a 2-figure tank, three attackers plus an overrun from the previous skirmish to eliminate a full-strength infantry that had no retreat, and then my last tank got lucky against a 2-figure infantry. A remarkable comeback, escaping from the surely closing jaws of death.

9 turns, 6-4 medals, 22-25 figures.

The Allies rolled 46% (11/24) against my armor. I rolled 18% (6/34) against theirs. If I hadn't been so lucky with timely hits at the end, one more decent Allied card undoubtedly would have sunk me.

I had a continuous flow of good cards, while the Germans generally had less mobility. My opening hand included 2-2-2, DHQ, Move Out, and a couple of Center cards.

In the first 5 turns, a German infantry and two Panzers tried to come through the Trail, and I was able to cut each of them down in turn. My sandbag infantry lasted through multiple attacks, partly because of German bad luck firing against him, and partly because his dice tended to be lethal.

Finally, on turn 7, a Panzer pushed past the third row, but I got a tank behind him and smushed him. Then, when the German infantry went after the lone infantry on my left, I laid down a Firefight, on which my armor killed a Center 2-fig in the open and my artillery hit a 3-fig infantry in the woods with 3 grenades.

My dice averages weren't anything special, but when you roll 64 dice and the faces line up fortuitously, you can score a lot of hits.

Significant card problems and mobility problems for me, as I held only a single Center card the while game. For several turns, while my units were still behind the forest, I was holding Close Assault, Firefight, and Ambush, which greatly inhibited my choices.

Finally, on turn 6, I was able to Coutner-Attack an Attack Center (killing the sandbag infantry) and follow up with a Firefight (killing an armor). Unfortunately, the Allies followed the first of those with an Assault Center (8 orders), then Coutner-Attacked my Firefight (two kills), and then two Armor Assaults (fortunately, no kills, and some well-timed flags).

On a TFH with 3 orders, I tied the game at 3, taking Lausdell Crossroads, but an Allied Right card knocked out the second Panzer of the night.

With my second Move Out of the game, I advanced some units to the front forests (finally), and I followed with an Infantry Assault, bagging my secong Allied armor. I was finally holding my first Center card of the night, and that was good enough to bag an infantry on the next turn.The Allies, now trailing 5-4, played an Assault Center, but moved their remaining 2-figure tank to the safety of the back row, so it didn't participate in the attack. They did kill an infantry, though -- and more critically, the artillery reduced my infantry at the Crossroads to a single figure.

My only option was an Attack Left, advancing my one well-positioned Panzer on the one hex with a clear shot at the Allied armor. Fortuitously, I rolled two more well-timed flags.

15 turns, 6-5 medals, 21-27 figures. One die different by either of us and I could have lost this one. Great battle!

Low-scoring game in the early going, as several of my draws did little to help me. It took me 4 turns to kill the Allied front infantry in sandbags. After 12 turns, I trailed, but only 1-2.

But then, I was able to finish off a tank in front of the Trail with a Left card. Also, I had sent a tank into the woods on my right, and he eliminated the other Alleid sandbag infantry, and I suddenly led, 3-2.

I played a TFH that rolled 3 orders -- but they were all infantry, and did little damage, though the Allies were left with a couple of weak infantries in the center. The Allies Counter-Attacked, but their 5 orders were sufficient to get only one kill.

I played an Assault Center, finishing off a second Allied armor, and though I would lose one more infantry, my Probe Center on turn 19 would order two tanks and kill two weakened infantries.

Both sides played it close to the vest in the early to midgame with ranged attacks being the rule of the day. I had lost the forward sandbag infantry near the trail and a tank. Later I would lose my right village infantry -- he was down to 2 figs and a German AMBUSH luckily only got 1 hit so that unit was able to hit a German infantry twice.

With the score 3 to 2 in favor of the Germans I used a CENTER ASSAULT to not only even the score but weaken a panzer on my right and more importantly to setup my use of TFH. A German 2 panzer attack nearly ruined those plans and both my remaining tanks were hit twice.

My TFH then rolled two ARM - an INF and two STARS. I used one tank and an infantry from the crossroads to cutoff an elite panzer. An infantry from Krinkle closed on a 2 fig infantry in the right town and that unit was wiped out. Then 4 shots from my other infantry got 2 hits on the elite panzer. A tank attack with 4d got another hit. A third 4d attack finished off this unit and the OR attack killed off a 1 fig panzer.

Allies was dealt with confusing hands - Attack-Left, Probe-Left, DHQ, Probe-Center, Arty Bombard, and Dig In. With only two useful cards in the early game, Allies was thinking of playing a full defensive state but German didn't waste any valuable time. They pushed hard with Move Out and reduced an infantry to 2-fig, followed with a CA on Allies DHQ, forcing Allies to take a hit on two flags because they have no Right card to mobilize anything.

German played their own DHQ, and boldly move their 1-fig panzer to the front and in a single turn, Allies suffered two casualties and the pain got worst after they failed to destroy that advancing panzer and a Mechanic repaired him fully in the next turn.

German kept rolling their tanks forward and Allies got a chance of wiping two medals after a DHQ came into play, but a miserable 5 dices miss were unbearable as they had a chance of kept attacking the helpless Allies in their baseline. In the midgame, Allies was trailing 1-4 when they played out BEL, and carefully avoiding Ambush card, got lucky this time, that panzer finally was taken out.

Meanwhile, a cornered 4-fig panzer was confronted by three units but another unbelievable cursed dices got no hit against it. Allies have to spent their Arty Bombard to inflict 50% hits against it but in the next two turns, Allies miserably unable to destroy it, and their last Armor Assault was countered by Germans and they easily rampaged two units for victory.

After counting up statistical hits against armor, German's statistic was 39% vs 20% on the Allies side, a wacky game indeed, as what Sam said, but as usual, it's a fun game.

Allies started the game by reducing an infantry to 1-fig and German damaged the Allies tank to 1-fig, but it recovered fully in the next turn. German slowly reduced a sandbagged infantry to 1-fig and finally took him out in the next turn. Both sides spent a lot of center cards in the first 10 turns.

German Recon Left drew TFH and they played BEL to reduce an infantry at Lausdell Crossroads to 2-fig. TFH was played next and eliminated a 1-fig tank there. Allies played Ambush and pushed an infantry back to the forest.

In the next turn, Allies played his second Medic, recovered 1-fig, but eventually that infantry was taken out and gave German the 3-1 lead. Allies countered the Attack Center and took out 2 weakened units with his tank. This action putting him into a vulnerable position and German got big chance of wiping it out with a Close Assault card, ordering 3 units, but double flags rolled and he's safely retreated from danger!

Another misfortune situation was a failure Barrage attack against a 2-fig tank. This bought the Allies some time to dig some cards and slowly eyeing two weakened infantries at the German left flank.

For the third times, German was unlucky when a close combat 3d attack to Allies 1-fig tank was failed. Allies countered with a back-to-back Armor Assault and eliminated a panzer, while the BEL card knocked out a 1-fig infantry and ended the German misery in a painfully 22-turns battle.

Allies was dealt with decent hands - Attack Left, Probe Center, 1-1-1, Probe Right, CA, and Medics. In the first turn, German played Barrage and score a hit on the artillery, and Allies quickly played CA and destroyed a panzer on the German backrow.

German played Infantry Assault and occupied the woods ready to strike the Lausdell Crossroads. Allies decided to strengthen their defense by moving the sandbagged infantry to the forest while an armor moved back and started to shoot from afar.

German began a major strike by launching Assault Left and with three panzers on their frontline, Allies played defensive by putting a tank on the forest while slowly picking an infantry on the open.

German's TFH produced an order to the panzer but the attack was too light, the Allies Move Out reduced another infantry to 1-fig. German quickly played Armor Assault, but luckily for the Allies, many units were covered in the woods and towns and they suffered minimum damages.

Allies retaliated with Probe Center and reduced a panzer to 1-fig while drawing Ambush after that. German was lured to kill a 2-fig infantry at the backrow, but the Ambush card nullified the attack and put another medal to the Allies rack.

In the next turn, Allies played Attack Center and grab three kills after an armor overruning two 1-fig infantries. German's infantry attacks still couldn't find any kill and the Allies last Barrage was able to eliminate a 1-fig infantry near the German backrow to seal the 9-turns game.

Opening air power on axis was devastating with 7 of 8 direct hits on columns in the rear. Followed by a tank advance in the center coupled with precision gunnery was unstoppable. Axis armor was annihilated in futile counterattack.

I got off to a much better start in game 2 and although I held three RIGHT 2s for most of the game, I drew enough good cards to keep the pressure on the Allied defense. I had TFH (3 orders), FIREFIGHT twice, INF ASSAULT, AIR POWER (great that it was not in the Allies hand), ARMOR ASSAULT, 2-2-2 and a CENTER ALL. It would be tough to lose w/ cards like that. I killed off the sandbagged Inf near the trail and the tank on the Allied right w/ a RIGHT ALL. I then eliminated the Inf Lausdell Crossroads. But Jeff bounced back w/ a TFH and scored two medals. My AIR POWER finished off a 1 fig baseline tank to tie the game at 4 all. I played my ARMOR ASSAULT to order three panzers which got me a 5th medal and forced the left Allied Inf out of it's sandbags. My followup TFH (2 panzers and an Inf) secured the 6 (25 figs) to 4 win (17 figs).

This gave me the 12 to 8 match sweep and allowed me to skip Rd 1 of the tourney.

This was game # 1 of the Mulligan round of the WBC Memoir '44 tourney.

The early game combats did not go well for my Allies. I lost the Infantry guarding the gap and my tank on my right. Despite this the score was fairly close in the game. However, I had two 2 fig inf on my right as the fighting continues in this sector. Then the turning point came when my Allied AIR POWER scored 6 hits vs the Germans on my right. This included a 1 fig Inf for a medal. I gambled by playing an INFANTRY ASSAULT on my right and advanced an Inf to fire on a baseline 2 fig panzer but got one hit. That Inf then was eliminated. My opponent played a conservative game and this allowed my to gain the upper hand. A endgame Allied FIREFIGHT failed to kill off a 2 fig Inf in the woods (rolled another non-hit flag here which had plagued me in the early part of the game). But a followup BARRAGE blasted a baseline 1 fig Inf off the board for the 6 to 4 win.

Allies used three greeat "distance" cards in the first five turns: BEL (instantly vaporized a 3-figure armor), Barrage (2 hits on my SF armor), and Air Power (fortunately, only 4 hits).

On turn 7, my Armor Assault eliminated a tank and infantry at my left-center seam, giving me a 3-1 lead. I marched deep into enemy territory with an Assault Left for another medal, but lost a pair tanks there to an enemy 2-2-2 and Attack Right.

On turn 10, my second TFH of the game gave me an order on each flank. (TFH would be a frequent character in my games in this tournament.) My tank on the left eliminated a weakened armor. On the right, two shots into the woods eliminated a 1-figure infantry, which was the only medal on that flank in our entire match.

Virtually a repeat of the previous battle with the same general results. The allied player took an early lead and held on in well protected positions. German forces made a bold attack from his left flank, with limited success. Allied player (Lollis) this time had more kills and took the head-to-head competition.

Most of the casualties happened between Schwarzenbruch Trail and Lausdell Crossroads (including two infantries I was able to advance to the town).

With the score tied 4-4 after 11 turns, the Allies were holding 5 Left cards with nothing worth targeting, no units on the Right, and no cards for the Center. (This helped explain why I couldn't get any Left cards to utilize my three tanks on that side.) So the Allies played three consecutive Recons.

Meanwhile, I was able to advance two tanks, Barraged a tank near Krinkelt off the board, and finally used a 2-2-2 and three tanks to eliminate a back-row infantry for the win in 15 turns.

My Barrage and BEL within the first three turns reduced two Allied tanks to 1 figure each, but I got no further shots at them. My infantry Assault next gave me good position, and then things sort of dried up.

Allied Infantry Assault (10 hits plus an overkill out of 13 dice), Center-2, two Move Outs, another Center-2, and TFH (4 orders) knocked out two of my tanks and four infantries, all near the Trail. I was only able to kill two more infantries.

I only held two Left cards all game, and they were both Recons. As a result, my Left armor was a non-factor.

I lost a center infantry to a Firefight on turn 3, but counter-attacked and knocked a tank down to 1 figure, and pushed it back into Krinkekt.

I had started the game with an Assault Right, and drew another early, so I moved a couple of tanks to that side, and played my Assaults on turns 7 and 8, with the latter knocking out the forward Allied infantry and a tank. One of my infantries on that side fell a turn later.

On turn 10, I finally eliminated the Allied right/center infantry in the sandbags. The following two turns, each side lost a pair of tanks near Krinkekt.

On turn 14, I used a newly-drawn Barrage against a 3-figure infantry on my right, figuring that if I didn't kill it off immediately, I had two cards (and two tanks) that could help finish the job. But the Barrage scored the necessary 3 hits to claim the victory.

6-4 in medals. 21-21 in figures. My tanks suffered a ton of damage, even though only two were eliminated.

2nd half
Dealt with section cards and Firefight, Allies pushed forward and gained 3 medals to lead comfortably against the German.

But a devastating German Armor Assault came into play and swept off 3 units at once while the Allies ran into trouble with 4 left cards and no center card at all.
This is painful as the next turn, three German panzers charged two units off the board and turned the tide to 5-3.

Still no center card, Allies forced to play the uneffective Firefight card and unable to kill a unit, and German closed the game quickly with two panzers surrounded a tank in the city

Allies artillery played a big role in this game where many hits came from that big guns, and also several flags were rolled to the panzers and kept the German cornered behind unable to mobilize panzers.

Finally, German Armor Assault came into play, and almost too late, thank God for the lucky two ARM rolled against the Allies 2-fig tank that save the day

I think the German dice were jinxed, especially early in the game, but I didn't mind.

Within the first 5 turns, I knocked out an infantry in the right-center and a tank on the right, and then I bagged a Panzer on the Schwarzenbruch Trail on turn 9 ... just in time, because the Germans then followed with an Armor Assault that proved lethal to my infantry and tank in the right-center area. (I knocked out one of the offending armors on the following turn. 4-2.)

A German Firefight reduced my two remaining tanks to 1 figure each, so I used my own Armor Assault while it could still be valuable ... scored no kills ... and lost both tanks on the following turn. (Ouch!)I killed a fourth armor on turn 13, and lost an infantry on the right on turn 16. 5-5 tie.

The Germans now had two 1-figure infantries on the right, beyond artillery range, and their remaining tank was coming through the woods. I pushed an infantry through the woods on the right, and then, at last, on turn 19, my 2-2-2 eliminated one of the 1-figs for the all-too-close victory.

German spent the whole turn playing aggressive, assisted with great cards, twice Infantry Assault, General Advance, DHQ, Assault Center, while the Allies was struggling with 4 left cards and almost no center cards until several turns.

Allies did get the first medal after a Barrage hit a panzer for an instant kill but the following Infantry Assault by the German turned the tide. Lausdell Crossroads was secured and an Allies tank was eliminated.

Allies had a chance of getting 2 medals after two German infantries were weakened to 1-fig and 2-fig respectively, but only one tank scored the hit. The game is tied now when the German played Assault Center and a panzer rolled ARM-GRE-GRE against the Allies tank.

The condition was critical for the Allies after losing two tanks and still no tactical cards in hand. The score is 4-3 when the German charged to the front and occupied a town at Krinkelt. Allies desperately played the Armor Assault and they knew the game is over when they shoot a triple ARM against an infantry.

German's Move Out card surrounded a tank and destroy it in a single roll as well as the frontline infantry that took out the backrow defense. A very offensive yet tactical play by the German proved effective dominating the Allies the whole game.

The Germans came out the woods rather quickly...little did they know the US had poor cards (full of lefts) but not knowing this...the Germans continued to push forward. A roll of 3 ARMs critically hurt the US.
Germans got roll after roll and used a combination of INF and ARM to secure the 6-3 win.

Played with Air Rules. 90% of the battle was around Schwarzenbruch Trail. German plane strafing units around Krinkekt caused some momentary diversion, but the Allies stuck to the plan of annihilating the Germans as they emerged from the woods and through the trail . . . and it worked eventually with a close, hard-fought win.

I managed to position my tanks on both flanks, providing to have them support for an infantry drive up the center. Unfortunately, they stalled in the woods and my center collapsed. ER advanced with her own units, cornering the stragglers while my tanks were unable to do anything but to sit on the sidelines and watch.

Fighting were confined to the area in front of the forest and in the free passage inside the trees. Allies basically turtled inside the city and pushed along the passage. Allied fortified positions with sandbags. It was a close game. 5-5 I began to rush in the left flank hoping to destroy one infantry but got one infrantry of mine crushed instead. Good game and very cautious by both sides :)

The allied forces managed to break upon the trail, taking some casualties. There their advanced ended however because the allied player ended up at one point having exclusively cards for the right allied flank which of course has been occupied only by one infantry unit. Under such circumstances the axis victory was pretty much inevitable.

I forced a break through the Trail very soon in the game and seemed to be heading for a quick victory. However, a botched Armor Assault led to the loss of three armor units in a single turn. In the end, much of the decisive fighting was done on the fronts.

Played the Air Pack version of this scenario... but since this was a Bulge scenario, we didn't take any air sortie cards (BAD weather).

The Germans managed to unblock the Trail & get armor flowing into the Crossroads area - coupled with complete chaos for Allied orders (VERY few Center section orders), they managed to finally overwhelm the right/center area and even push elite tankers up to our final defensive line.

I start by moving my tank and firing on the sandbagged Inf and getting on hit. Gollum fires on my Inf in the woods and hits it twice. I play BARRAGE and fire on his arty but only get 1 hit. Gollum plays INF ASSAULT and orders 6 units in the center. He only fires two units and only gets 1 hit (on my Inf in the woods - down to 1 fig). I play COUNTER ATTACK (INF ASSAULT). I move 6 units in the center and 4 will fire. I get two hits on the sandbagged Inf, another hit (and flag) on a center Inf and the All right tank. Gollum follows w/ a 2-2-2 card. He orders 3 Inf, two tanks and his arty. He kills off my 1 fig Inf in the woods, hits two other Inf twice and gets a hit on a third Inf. On thing he did not do was take ground and do an Overrun attack on one of my 2 fig Inf. So now I am down 0 to 1 in the medal count and hurting. I play a CENTER 3. I order my 2 fig Inf back into the woods, move a tank and an Inf forward. The tank wipes out the 1 fig sandbagged Inf and gets a hit on the right Allies tank. My Inf hits the Allied Inf in Lausdell Crossroads twice. The medal count is now tied 1 to 1. Gollum lays down a CENTER 3. He rolls two hits on my Inf and two more on my armor. His 3 tnk shots miss my tank though. I play LEFT 2. I move an Armor and inf. My 5 shots vs his 1 fig tank all miss!! Gollum play 1-1-1. He kills off my 2 fig armor for a 1 to 2 medal lead. I play INF ASSAULT and moves 5 Inf in the center forward, but three only have 2 figs each. I do kill off a 2 fig Inf and finally bag the 1 fig tank to take the lead 3 to 2. I also have taken Lausell Crossroads. Gollum plays CENTER 3. Two tanks and an Inf move / fire. One of my 2 fig Inf dies and another of my Inf reduced to 3 figs and retreats two hexes into the center woods. The medal count is tied again 3 to 3. I play LEFT 3. I pull back my other two 2 fig Inf into the woods and move my 3 fig panzer into the Center / Left woods hex. Gollum plays TFH. He gets to order two armor and two Inf. He kills off my 3 fig Inf in Lausell Crossroads to go ahead 3 to 4. I play a LEFT 1. I gamble and move my panzer to fire on his tank w/ no retreat path, but only roll three INF. Drat. I draw a LEFT 3 and the ARTY BOMBARD. I keep the Arty card as I feel I my need it to move my center armor in the open. Gollum plays a CENTER 1 and his 3 shots on my tank kill it. What a turn of events. I now trail by a score of 3 to 5. I play ARTY BOMBARD. I move my last center tank forward to the woods edge opposite the Allied line. Gollum plays Dig In. Three Inf in Rocherath and one in Krinkekt get sandbags. I play CENTER 2. His one armor unit still has no place to retreat to and I roll a hit and a flag hit on it w/ 4 shots. Gollum plays COUNTER ATTACK (CENTER 2). He moves a tank forward and goes 2 for 2 on my Inf in the woods (down to 1 fig). I play MOVE OUT. I move my 1 fig Inf back and move three other 4 fig Inf forward. Gollum plays INF ASSAULT. He does little w/ this card though. I play 2-2-2. I move my two Left armor, pull my 1 fig Inf out of arty range and fire my 3 shots vs his 1 fig tank (still cannot retreat) - but miss again. Gollum plays a LEFT 1. This is basically a discard. Seems like w/ his 5 to 3 lead he is more than content to sit back and let me come to him. I play 1-1-1. I finally finish off his 1 fig tank. My elite armor rolls into the open (on the Allied right) but missed w/ its three shots vs the last Allied tank. I now trail 4 to 5. Gollum plays COUNTER ATTACK (1-1-1). His tanks get two hits on my elite armor. Man, this is twice this has happended to me. I miss and he hits al least twice. I play CENTER 3. I move all three of my tanks. My three shots vs his armor miss again, but I get 1 hit vs two different Inf units. Gollum plays LEFT 3. He fires 5 shots vs my 3 fig tank but only gets 1 hit. I play ARMOR ASSAULT. I get two hits on his sandbagged Inf (Allied Left) and kill off his last tank to take the lead at 5 to 5. Gollum plays TFH - again!! He only gets an Inf and a Star. He orders an Inf and his Arty. A mistake perhaps as he has two Inf adjacent to my 3 fig tank. His 3 arty shots get 2 hits, but his 4 Inf shots only get a flag. Wow. Had he ordered two Inf, one of them could have cut off my retreat and this would have given him 8 shots instead of the 7 he took and the flag he rolled would have killed off my tank for the win. I play RIGHT 2. I move an Inf and my tank adjacent to the 1 fig Inf there. My sole Inf sho kills off this unit for the win. A little more aggressive play on my opponent's part might have ended this a lot sooner (in his favor). I had no margin for error and if he pressed the issue I would not have had the chance to rest & recoop before my final push.

ALL Turn # 2
RIGHT 1 / I decide to gamble early and keep my now 2 fig Inf in the sandbag in the hopes of killing off jeskar's 2 fig Inf in the woods (w/ 2 shots). Shots - 2 vs Inf (1 hit & a flag) I draw an ARMOR ASSAULT (keep it) and a 1-1-1 card.

ALL Turn # 3
RIGHT 3 / I move my tank so that it can fire on the center Ger Inf in the open (w/ no retreat path), move my right rear Inf (in the open) to take cover in the right sector village and fire my sandbagged Inf. Shots - 5 vs Inf (3 hits) Drat - hoping for a kill there. But now he has two 1 fig Inf on the board. I draw a CENTER 2

ALL Turn # 4
CENTER 2 / I order a tank and sandbagged Inf with their firepower (up to 6 shots) I hope to wipe out that Ger tank. Shots - 6 vs armor (2 hits) - I did get my 6 shots but no kill another Ger 1 fig unit on the board though. I draw a LEFT 3

GER Turn # 5 CLOSE ASSAULT / He orders his 1 fig tank next to my 1 fig sandbagged and wipes it out which is not unexpected. What hurt though, is with his Overrun Attack he kills off one of my armor units w/ his 3 shots. Shots - 3 vs Inf (1 hit on 1 fig) & 3 vs Armor (3 hits) Medal count - 0 to 2 in Jeskars favor Well, now what. I missed my shot at getting the first medal. Now Jeskar not only kills off my Inf (that I expected ) but then picks up another medal by going 3 for 3 on one of my armor units. That hurt.

ALL Turn # 5
DHQ / I order two center Inf. One moves into Krinkekt and the other along with an armor into Rocherath. My other tank moves between the center and right town hexes to fire on the 1 fig Ger tank. Shots - 3 vs armor (3 hits but only needed one to finish the job) Medal count 1 to 2 in Jeskars favor - I draw CENTER 3

GER Turn # 6
CENTER ALL / A biggie for the Germans. He orders 8 units although the 1 fig Inf will not be moved forward. Four Inf and a elite tank move into or advance further into the center woods while another Ger tank advances down the Schwarzenback Trail. This unit fires on my Inf in Lausdell Crossroads. The 1 fig Inf pulls back to the Ger board edge and another Inf moves into the Center / Ger Left woods hex. Shots vs Inf 1 (1 hit)

ALL Turn # 6
RIGHT ALL ( I tempted to use my Counter Attack card here, but I would not have many good targets so I will wait on this one. Well, this only orders two units and really only one as I will leave my inf in the town. I move my armor into the center town hex. I still have armor assault and wish to conserve both remaining armor units when use it. Shots - none I draw BEL

GER Turn # 7
MOVE OUT / Jeskar orders 3 inf in the center and 1 on his right. Two of those units end up in the woods on the GER right and the other two advance adjacent to Lausdell Crossroads. Their 4 shots kill off my 3 fig in that town. One Ger Inf takes ground and has that town. Well, down 1 to 3 in the medal count. Not good. Shots 4 vs Inf (3 hits on a 3 fig) Medal count 1 to 3 in Jeskars favor

ALL Turn # 7
CENTER ALL. I hate to play this now, but I must react somehow to both the threat posed to my center and left. I order 3 Inf, 2 Armor and my arty. Now, with a Ger Inf in the open, I can use my armor. I advance two Inf towards Lausdell Crossroads and move my board edge Inf into Rocherath. Both my move forward. One gets adjacent to the Ger Inf in the open. I hope to retreat the Ger Inf out of Lausdell. If I do, I may kill off both Inf. My first tank fires at range at the inf in the open and gets 3 hits. Now, this Should allow my other tank to kill off that unit and get an Overrun Attack on the Ger armor near the town. That is what happens, but I only get one hit on his tank. My four shots against the inf in the town only gets a hit and two flags. I fire my arty at the tank and Ger tank and reduce it to 1 fig w/ 1 shot. Again, I fall short. 10 vs Inf (5 hits & 2 flags) 4 vs Armor ( 2 hits) Medal count 2 to 3 in Jeskars favor - I draw a RIGHT 3

GER Turn # 8
CENTER 2 / Both center armor units roll. Six shots take out one of my armor w/ a flag this unit could have retreated into a town hex and probably survived the turn. The 1 fig Ger tank takes ground and now fire 3 shots on my Inf in the open but only gets a flag and it retreats to Krinkekt. Bad enough though. My Armor Assault in the hole is worth a lot less now. Shots - 6 vs Armor (3 hits) 3 vs inf ( Flag) Medal count 2 to 4 in s favor

ALL Turn # 8
CENTER 3 / I play it safe and move both my armor and inf that were in the open into town hexes. I Take a pot shot w/ my inf in Krinkekt on the 1 fig panzer and kill it off. Shots 1 vs Arm ( 1 hit) Medal count 3 to 4 in Jeskars favor -- I draw a Center 3

ALL Turn # 9
lEFT 3 / I must now respond to this new threat. I move one Inf into the woods and another forward. I have been dancing to his tune from the beginning. Maybe now I can set the tone. Shots 4 vs Inf (2 hits & a flag). Drat hoping for a kill there, but no luck. I draw a CENTER 3 CARD.

GER Turn # 10
INF ASSAULT / He moves two Inf forward and one back (2 fig unit). He fires on my sandbagged Inf and gets two hits. Another weak unit on the front lines. Not good. Shots vs 7 Inf (3 hits) note 3 (1 hit) are from Ambush play in my turn 10 also note that Jeskar fired 3 shots when he should have only fired 2 (got the hit on the last illegal roll) Did not catch It at that time.

ALL Turn # 10
BEL / I will play it for my 2 fig unit to get it out of harms way and the best part is it can fire from the Sandbags w/ its four dice. But of course, Jeskar has Ambush and gets a hit w/ his 2 dice. My 4 only hit once and get a flag. I move the Inf back into Rocherath. Shots 4 (hit & flag) I draw Armor Assault now I have two more than the number of tank units I have!!

GER Turn # 11
2-0-2 / The two Ger elite armor move into the center. Two Ger Inf move forward on my Left. His lone armor shot kills off my 1 fig Inf in town. With the 2 figs it should have had this would not have happened. His other two Inf open fire on my Inf in the open and get 2 hits. Shots vs Inf 5 (3 hits) Well, I now have another unit w/ only 2 figs on the front lines. Medal count 3 to 5 in Jeskars favor

ALL Turn # 11
COUNTER ATTACK / I hate to use this card here, but I must get that 2 fig inf out of there. This is my best option to buy at least another turn. I move the 2 fig Inf into the right town hex and fire a Inf. Shots 1 vs Inf (hit) I draw LEFT ALL

GER Turn # 12
2-2-2 card. / Yikes 6 units ordered. Just what I needed. Jekar pulls back his 2 fig Rt Inf into the Woods and moves his center armor and rt Inf forward. He also moves two tanks and an Inf into his Left. He dings my 4 fig Inf in the woods and also hits my 2 fig Inf in the town. He is now 1 hit away from a win. Shots 3 vs Inf ( 2 hits)

ALL Turn # 12
CENTER 3 / Not too many options here. I must try to eliminate the threat to my 1 fig unit. That means killing off a 4 fig arm and a 4 fig inf. Good luck w. that. It kills me that I cannot use my Armor Assaults here. I move my armor forward. My right inf hits w/ its shot on a Ger Inf. My Arty gets a hit on the 4 fig tank and my armor comes through w/ a 3 for 3 to kill off this unit. My overrun attack on the ger Inf gets another 2 hits. Medal count 4 to 5 in Jeskars favor

GER Turn # 13
THF - Rolls 4 Inf / No armor ordered, but this should do him just fine. Well, he advances and fires several shots on two Inf and my tank. Shots - 5 vs Inf (3 hits) & 2 vs Arm ( hit & flag) Now I have two 1 fig units in danger. I must kill off Two Ger units to win or else.

ALL Turn # 13
CENTER 3 / I fire my right Inf and get two hits. Then my armor gets a hit and a flag on the Ger 2 Fig inf. But for some reason, I did not TG & OR attack this unit. With 3 shots I could have killed it and then fired my arty (w/ one shot on the 1 fig Ger Inf on my right. Instead, I fired the arty w/ 2 shots on the 1 fig Inf. What a major mistake!! I could have won this game w/ that die roll. Shots 6 (4 & a flag) MEDAL COUNT - 5 TO 5 in Jeskar's favor. I draw LEFT 3

I had some good cards to start out with (Firefight and Meds & Mech) and drew a few more during the game.

The Germans tried forcing their way down the trail, but my countermoves proved more than they could handle. Soon, I was up 3 to 0 in medals. Every advance was turned back. I just picked them off as they approached.

Then, my opponent played Armor Assault. But only two of his tanks units could fire. One of his units only hit one of my tanks twice w/ 8 shots. I then played my own Armor Assault and wiped out one of his armor units and drove back the other. He then played Counterattack. This time only one of his armor could fire and missed on 4 shots against one of my tanks.

Super scenario. Unfortunately Germans didn't get any Centre cards for a while so got bogged down which gave US time to get infantry to all the villages and the armour to 2-3 hexes away from the woods, so could take potshots at the German infantry. By the time the Panzers rolled, they were walking into a serious firefight.

The German offensive starts with an Air Power on Krinkekt and a 3 movement on the left but soon it gets a stop suffering a "lack of communications" due to three cards obliged on his right flank. The American troops advance, taking position on all the villages, choicing a deeper defense on Lausdell so abandoning the position facing the Schwarzenbruck trail. After complex movements in the forest, the Germans, once fixed the right flank, start the attack on the allied right flank and on Lausdell, that's conquered. The Americans move massively on the crossroads, regaining the village with too expensive fights. The immediate Axis counterattack from the centre and both flanks finds the Allied troops in the open ground around Lausdell. It's the end of the battle.

Axis leftmost tanks drove through the forest and caused casualties to allies before allies managed to stop menacing german tanks. After that incident middle sector was the hotpoint of battling for the excitingly even score 5-5. Both sides had two concecutive turns to end game but dice didn't work at all. Eventually allies air power came and ended game (sort of cowardice way).

Forests near Schwarzenbruch Trail were almost the bottleneck between Axis victory. Axis had to use many effective cards just to get tanks and troops on the other side through forests. Allied advanced near forest with great haste and tried to nail Axis there. Battle was very tight and exciting.